Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Zechariah 14:5
And ye shall flee [to] the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, [and] all the saints with thee.
5. to the valley of the mountains ] Rather, by the valley of My mountains, i.e. a way of escape from the city shall be opened to you along the valley formed by My mountains, those mountains, that is, which I have just made for that very purpose, by cleaving the mount of Olives.
unto Azal ] Jerome and others render, very near, “usque ad proximum.” If, however, Azal is a proper name, it denotes some then familiar locality, either at the eastern extremity of the newly-formed valley, or more probably at its western extremity, close to the walls of Jerusalem. In any case the meaning is that the way of escape shall be made easy.
the earthquake in the days of Uzziah ] There is no mention of this in the historical books. The references to it here and in Amo 1:1 show that it made a deep impression on the people and was long remembered. The story of Josephus (see Stanley, Jewish Church, ii. 439) connecting it with Uzziah’s attempt to burn incense (2Ch 26:19) is probably only an embellishment of this passage of Zechariah. Ewald puts the earthquake in “one of the first years of Uzziah.”
all the saints ] Rather, holy ones, i.e. angels. Comp. Deu 33:2; Mat 25:31; Judges 14.
with thee ] i.e. with the Lord, to whom the prophet turns in direct address. These abrupt changes of person are not uncommon in Hebrew. See chap. Zec 2:8, note.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains – Rather, along the valley of My mountains namely, of those mountains, which God had just formed by dividing the mount of Olives. For the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal, that is, Azel, the same word which enters into Beth-Azel of Micah, where the allusion probably is to its firm-rootedness. It is more probable that the name of a place should have been chosen with an allusive meaning, as in Micah, than that an unusual appellative should have been chosen to express a very common meaning. Cyril had heard of it as the name of a village at the extremity of the mountain. Elsewhere it might very probably have been destroyed in the destructive Roman wars: The Roman camp in the last siege must have been very near it . The destruction of villages, after the frantic revolt under Bar-Kochba, was enormous.
Yea, ye shall flee like as ye fled from before the earthquake – An earthquake in the time of Uzziah, whose memory survived the captivity to the time of Zechariah, nearly two centuries, must have been very terrible, but no historical account remains of it, Josephus having apparently described the past earthquake in the language which Zechariah uses of the future (see the introduction to Amos). Such an earthquake is the more remarkable a visitation in Jerusalem, because it was out of the line of earthquakes. These were to the north and east of Palestine: within it, they were almost unknown (see Amo 4:11, vol. i. p. 286). Interpositions of God even in mans favor, are full of awe and terror. They are tokens of the presence of the all-holy among the unholy. Fear was an accompaniment of special miracles in the Gospel, not only among the poor Gadarenes Mar 5:15; Luk 8:25, or the people , but even the Apostles ; apart from the effect of the sight of angels on us who are in the flesh . It is then quite compatible, that the valley so formed should be the means of deliverance, and yet an occasion of terror to those delivered through it. The escape of the Christians in Jerusalem to Pella, during the break of the siege, after the withdrawal of Cestius Gallus was a slight image of this deliverance.
And the Lord thy God shall come, and all the saints with Thee, O God – The prophet, having spoken of God as my God, turns suddenly to speak to Him, as present. Jerome on Zec 14:6-7 : This is manifestly said of the second Coming of the Saviour, of which John too in his Apocalypse says, Behold He shall come with the clouds, and every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him Rev 1:7. And the Lord Himself in the Gospel declareth, that the Son of Man shall come in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory Mat 24:30. He shall come with the clouds, that is, with the angels, who are ministering spirits and are sent for different offices, and with the prophets and apostles. Ribera: Whenever Scripture says that the saints and angels come with Christ, it is always speaking of His second Coming, as in that, When the Son of Man shall come in His glory and all His holy angels with Him Mat 25:31, and in the Epistle of Jude, Behold the Lord cometh with ten thousand of His saints, to execute judgment Jud 1:14-15.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 5. Ye shall flee to the valley] Some think this refers to the valley through which Zedekiah and others endeavoured to escape when Nebuchadnezzar pressed the siege of Jerusalem: but it appears to speak only of the Jewish wars of the Romans.
Azal] This, as a place, is not known. If a place, it was most probably near to Jerusalem; and had its name from that circumstance.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
And ye, you that are members of the church, and whom God doth in wonderful power and majesty come to save,
shall flee; filled with apprehensions of such strange things, and troubled at the convulsions and strugglings of nations against God and you, shall, as in a great fear, flee to some place of safety and repose; you will flee the valley itself which God maketh: by terrible things in righteousness doth God answer, and his people tremble before him when he cometh to save them. So here are represented to us a people wonderfully saved, and astonished at the methods of it; God makes valleys in the midst of mountains, and they (for whose good they are made) flee those valleys. So the words were better read; our marginal readings and the Gallic version do so read it.
For, or although, or
notwithstanding, this
valley reach unto Azal, which speaks, say some, a separate place, i.e. provided of God for their safety a Zoar for Lot, or Pella for the citizens of Jerusalem. They shall, as is usual in great frights and consternation of mind, not see how safe they are, or whither to go, but some will run for a while from or beyond their refuge.
As ye fled from before the earthquake: this was some dreadful earthquake, and put the people into a mighty fear, and made them flee in all haste; it is mentioned Amo 1:1; and the prophet tells us, that when God shakes the kingdoms of his enemies, to make a plain and level way for his ransomed ones, it shall make them flee for fear too.
The Lord my God shall come: as thus rendered it gives reason of this commotion of mind and this hasty flight. But it would be plainer if it were, as it may be, I think, read, and, or yet, O Lord my God, come, and bring all the saints with thee. As if it were said, Though it will, O Lord, put us into such fears; yet without such wonderful works we shall not have our hopes, nor see thy salvation; therefore, O Lord my God, come, and bring thy saints, holy ones, angels, with thee: and so will this be like that of St. John, Rev 22:20, shutting up the visions of the new heaven and the new earth, and the appendages of them, with,
Come, Lord Jesus.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
5. ye shall flee tothe valleyrather “through the valley,” as in2Sa 2:29. The valley made bythe cleaving asunder of the Mount of Olives (Zec14:4) is designed to be their way of escape, not their place ofrefuge [MAURER]. JEROMEis on the side of English Version. If it be translated so, itwill mean, Ye shall flee “to” the valley, not to hidethere, but as the passage through which an escape may be effected.The same divinely sent earthquake which swallows up the foe, opensout a way of escape to God’s people. The earthquake in Uzziah’s daysis mentioned (Am 1:1) as arecognized epoch in Jewish history. Compare also Isa6:1: perhaps the same year that Jehovah held His heavenly courtand gave commission to Isaiah for the Jews, an earthquake in thephysical world, as often happens (Mt24:7), marked momentous movements in the unseen spiritual world.
of the mountainsrather,”of My mountains,” namely, Zion and Moriah,peculiarly sacred to Jehovah [MOORE].Or, the mountains formed by My cleaving Olivet into two[MAURER].
Azalthe name of aplace near a gate east of the city. The Hebrew means”adjoining” [HENDERSON].Others give the meaning, “departed,” “ceased.”The valley reaches up to the city gates, so as to enable the fleeingcitizens to betake themselves immediately to it on leaving the city.
Lord my God . . . withtheeThe mention of the “Lord my God” leads theprophet to pass suddenly to a direct address to Jehovah. It is as if”lifting up his head” (Lu21:28), he suddenly sees in vision the Lord coming, and joyfullyexclaims, “All the saints with Thee!” So Isa25:9.
saintsholy angelsescorting the returning King (Mat 24:30;Mat 24:31; Jdg 1:14);and redeemed men (1Co 15:23;1Th 3:13; 1Th 4:14).Compare the similar mention of the “saints” and “angels”at His coming on Sinai (Deu 32:2;Deu 32:3; Act 7:53;Gal 3:19; Heb 2:2).PHILLIPS thinks Azal isAscalon on the Mediterranean. An earthquake beneath Messiah’s treadwill divide Syria, making from Jerusalem to Azal a valley which willadmit the ocean waters from the west to the Dead Sea. The waters willrush down the valley of Arabah, the old bed of the Jordan, clear awaythe sand-drift of four thousand years, and cause the commerce ofPetra and Tyre to center in the holy city. The Dead Sea rising aboveits shores will overflow by the valley of Edom, completing thestraits of Azal into the Red Sea. Thus will be formed the great poolof Jerusalem (compare Zec 14:8;Eze 47:1; Joe 3:18).Euphrates will be the north boundary, and the Red Sea the south.Twenty-five miles north and twenty-five miles south of Jerusalem willform one side of the fifty miles square of the Lord’s Holy Oblation(Eze 48:1-35). Thereare seven spaces of fifty miles each from Jerusalem northward to theEuphrates, and five spaces of fifty miles each southward to the RedSea. Thus there are thirteen equal distances on the breadth of thefuture promised land, one for the oblation and twelve for the tribes,according to Eze 48:1-35.That the Euphrates north, Mediterranean west, the Nile and Red Seasouth, are to be the future boundaries of the holy land, which willinclude Syria and Arabia, is favored by Gen 15:8;Exo 23:31; Deu 11:24;Jos 1:4; 1Ki 4:21;2Ch 9:26; Isa 27:12;all which was partially realized in Solomon’s reign, shall beantitypically so hereafter. The theory, if true, will clear away manydifficulties in the way of the literal interpretation of this chapterand Eze 48:1-35.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And ye shall flee [to] the valley of the mountains,…. To seek for shelter and safety in them, for fear of the Lord, and the glory of his majesty, whom every eye shall see, Isa 2:19:
for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal; a name of a place not known; it may be thought to be at some considerable distance:
yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah; two years before which Amos prophesied, Am 1:1 and which, according to Josephus i, was at the time when King Uzziah was stricken with a leprosy for invading the priest’s office; when, as he says, at a place before the city called Eroge, half part of the mountain towards the west was broken, and rolled half a mile towards the eastern part, and there stood; so that the ways were stopped up to the king’s gardens:
and the Lord my God shall come; the Lord Jesus Christ, who is truly God, and the God of his people; and who will appear to be so at his second coming, which is here meant, by raising the dead, gathering all nations before him, and separating them; by bringing to light all secret and hidden things; judging the whole world, and executing the sentence on them; and particularly by taking his own people to himself:
[and] all the saints with thee: the Targum, and the Septuagint, Syriac, and Arabic versions, read, “with him”; meaning either the holy angels; so Aben Ezra, Kimchi, and Ben Melech; who will attend him partly for the glory of his majesty, and partly for terror to the wicked, and also for service; or rather glorified saints, the spirits of just men made perfect, whom Christ will bring with him to be united to their bodies, which will now be raised, and to be with him in the new heavens and new earth, which will now be formed, and to be presented to him, and dwell with him, during the thousand years.
i Antiqu. l. 9. c. 10. sect. 4.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
The Prophet says again, that God’s presence would be terrible, so that it would put to flight all the Jews; for though God promises to be the deliverer of his chosen people, yet as there were still mixed with them hypocrites, his language varies. But we must further observe, that though the Lord may appear for our deliverance, it yet cannot be but that his majesty will strike us with fear; for the flesh must be humbled before God. What the Prophet then says is the same as though he had said, that the coming of God, which he had just mentioned, would be fearful to all, not only to open enemies whom he would come to destroy, but also to the faithful, though they knew that he would put forth his power to save them. And thus the Prophet seems to reason from the less to the greater; for if the faithful, who look anxiously for God, yet tremble and quake at his presence, what must happen to his enemies, who know that he is against them? As then the Prophet bids here the faithful to be prepared reverently to look for God, so also he shows that he will be dreadful to all the ungodly, in order that the elect might not hesitate to flee to his aid and to rely on him.
Flee, he says, shall ye through the valley of the mountains. Some imagine this to have been a valley so called, because it was of long extent, stretching through chains of mountains; but we read nothing of this in scripture. It seems to me probable, that valleys of the mountains were all those places called, which were rough, impassable, and intricate. Since then there was much wood, and no easy passage through these countries, the Prophet says that there would be a long valley, which never was before, but which the rending, of which he had spoken, would produce. And for the same purpose he adds, Reach shall the valley of the mountains to Azal. This I think is a proper name of a place; (181) yet some render it, next; but I see not for what reason. The meaning then is, — that where there were previously many hills which were not passable, or even mountains through which it was difficult to penetrate, there would be one continuous and even valley to a place very remote.
And he says, that flight would be hasty, as in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah; for it appears from sacred history that Judah was then shaken with a terrible earthquake. The Jews, as they are bold in their conjectures, suppose that this happened when Uzziah approached the altar to burn incense to God; and Jerome has followed them. But at what time that earthquake happened is not certain. Amos says that he began to prophecy two years after an earthquake, (Amo 1:1😉 but for what cause the earth was then shaken we nowhere read: and yet we learn from this as well as from other passages, that it was an awful sign and presage of God’s vengeance. God then intended to announce to the Jews a dreadful calamity, when he thus shook the earth. And for the same purpose also does Zechariah now say, that the flight would be precipitous, as when the Jews retook themselves to flight, as it were in extreme despair, in the time of Uzziah. As then ye fled from the earthquake, so shall ye flee now. A long time had indeed intervened from the death of Uzziah to the return of the people; hence the Prophet intimates that it would be an unusual calamity, for the like had not happened which had caused so much terror to the Jews for many ages.
But we must remember what I have said — that this coming of God is not described as fearful for the purpose of threatening the Jews; but rather in order to show that the ungodly would not be able to stand in the presence of God, as he would terrify even those for whose aid he would come forth. And we must also observe what has been stated that God varies his address by his Prophets; for now he speaks to the whole Church, in which hypocrites are mingled with the sincere, and so threatening must be blended with promises, and then, he directs his words especially to the elect alone, to whom he manifests his favor.
He says at length, And come shall Jehovah, my God. The Prophet repeats what he had said shortly before — that God’s power would be made evident to the Jews, as though they saw it with their eyes. There is indeed no necessity to suppose that God would actually descend from heaven; but he teaches us, as I have said, that though God’s power would be for a time hidden, it would at length appear in the deliverance of his elect, as though God descended for the purpose from heaven. He calls him his God, in order to gain more credit to his prophecy. He no doubt thus courageously assailed all the ungodly, to whom promises as well as threatening were a mockery; and he also intended to support the minds of the godly, that they might not doubt but that this was promised them from above, though they heard but the voice of a mortal man. The Prophet then with great confidence claims God here as his God, as though he had said — that there was no reason for them to judge of what he said by any worldly circumstance or by his person; in short, he declares here that he was sent from above, that he did not rashly intrude himself, so as to promise anything which he himself had invented, but that he was favored with a divine mission, so that he represented God himself.
And this also is the object of the conclusion, which has been overlooked by some. All the saints with thee. There seems to be here a kind of indignation, as though the Prophet turned himself away from his hearers, whom he observed to be in a measure prepared obstinately to reject his heavenly doctrine; for he turns his discourse to God. The sentence seems indeed to lose a portion of its gracefulness, when the Prophet speaks so abruptly, Come shall Jehovah my God, all the saints with thee (182) He might have said “all the saints with him:” but as I have said, he addresses God, as though he could not, on account of disgust, speak to malignant and perverse men, and this serves much to confirm the authority of his prophecy; for he not only declares boldly to men what was to be, but also appeals to God as his witness; nay, he seems as though he had derived by a secret and familiar colloquy what he certainly knew was committed to him by God. But by saints, as I think, he understands the angels; for to include the holy patriarchs and kings, would seem unnatural and far-fetched: and angels, we know, are called saints or holy in other places, as we have seen in the third chapter of Habakkuk (Hab 3:1); and they are called sometimes elect angels. In short, the Prophet shows, that the coming of God would be magnificent; he would descend, as it were, in a visible manner together with his angels, that men’s minds might be roused into admiration and wonder. This is the meaning.
(181) So thought Kimchi, Drusius, Grotius, Newcome, and also Henderson Jerome renders it “ proximum — nearest or next,” i.e., the temple. The verb [ נסתם ], with a prefixed [ ו ], rendered, “Ye shall flee,” occurs three times in this verse, and may be the Niphal of [ סתם ], to stop or close up, as well as the second person plural of [ נם ], to flee. The Septuagint, the Targum, Symmachus, and the Arabic, take the first meaning, which Dathius and Blayney have adopted: then the verse would be as follows, —
5. And closed up shall be the valley of the mountains, Reach shall the valleys of the mountains to Azal; Yea, closed up shall it be, as it was closed up At the earthquake, in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah.
There are two objections to this version; the one is, that [ מפני ], “from the presence,” before “earthquake,” is not a suitable proposition to come after “closed up:” but to “flee from the presence of,” or from, the earthquake, is an appropriate language. Hence the verse itself clearly shows that the right version is that which has been adopted by most of modern critics. — Ed.
(182) The greatest number of MS. have “and” before “all saints,” as well as the Septuagint, the Targum, the Syriac, and the Arabic. The three last verses have also “his” before “saints.” Very many MS., the Septuagint, the Targum, and the early versions, have “with him,” instead of “with thee.” Then the best reading would be, —
And come shall Jehovah my God, And all his saints with him.
Blayney proposes another version, —
And Jehovah shall come, The God of all holy ones with thee.
He considers that Jerusalem, addressed in the second person in verse first, is addressed here, “with thee,” and that what is meant is, that God, the protector of all holy ones, all true believers, would march as it were with Jerusalem as its ally against the nations beforementioned in verse third. Taking the text as it is, the rendering is no doubt literal: but the best authorities are in favor of the text as amended above. — Ed.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(5) And ye shall flee to.The Hebrew will not bear the rendering of Luther, and ye shall flee before. The Oriental Jews, Targ., LXX., &c., by a different vocalisation, read, And the valley of my mountains shall be stopped; but this reading is inappropriate. My mountains, the Mount of Olives, which is divided in twain by the advent of the Lord, he calls my mountains (Marg.). It seems that they would flee thither for fear of being overwhelmed in the destruction of Jerusalem, for the valley of the mountains will afford a ready place of refuge, for it shall reach unto Azal. Some suppose Azal to be a place near Jerusalem (some placing it to the west of the Temple-Mount, others to the east of the Mount of Olives), but others take the word as a preposition, and render it very nigh. In any case, they flee to the valley because of its convenient proximity.
The earthquake in the days of Uzziah is not mentioned in the sacred history, but it was an event that left such an impression on the popular mind that it became an era from which to date (Amo. 1:1). Similarly in Crete recent events are dated by such eras as in the year before the great earthquake. (Blakesleys Herodotus i. 263.) Thus the mention of this earthquake does not fix the date of the prophecy to the days of Uzziah as some commentators have affirmed. The second person, ye fled, need not be taken as referring directly to the persons addressed; but, considering the fact of the continuity of the national existence, may be understood as denoting the same nation at an earlier period, as in Jos. 24:5. Moreover, if we cared to dwell on the fact of the addition of the words king of Judah to the name of Uzziah, it might be taken to imply that the prophecy was delivered so long after the time of Uzziah that it was necessary for the prophet to remind his hearers who this Uzziah was.
Saints.Better, angels. (Comp. Deu. 33:2; Psa. 89:5 [6].)
With thee.The change into the second person denotes the prophets own joyful waiting for his Gods advent. Some versions and MSS. read with him.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
YHWH Will Come With His Holy Ones And Become King Over All The Earth ( Zec 14:5-9 ).
The progress of God’s purposes is now described. God will bring about a new work on behalf of His people, and will establish His Kingly Rule, and with Him will come a host of angels who are to be ‘ministering spirits to the heirs of salvation’ (Heb 1:14).
Zec 14:5
‘And YHWH my God will come (go), and all the holy ones with you.’
It is YHWH of Hosts Who is here, and His hosts are with Him. Just as He came with His hosts for Elijah and Elisha, so He has come in even greater power for His people (2Ki 2:11-12; 2Ki 6:17 – note that the chariots were a symbol of God’s presence with His prophets, not transport for Elijah). It is possible that these words are what Jesus had in mind when He declares that had He so wished He could have called on twelve legions of angels (Mat 26:53). He knew that they were there ready to act at YHWH’s command.
Or the idea may be that God would go forth with His saints (holy ones) spreading the good news of His Kingly Rule around the world.
‘With you’. This sudden change from the third person to the second is typical of Zechariah. Here he changes abruptly from viewing the scene to addressing God (compare on chapter Zec 2:8-9; Zec 7:13 and on Zec 12:6).
Zec 14:6-7
‘And it will happen in that day that the light will not be with brightness and with gloom, but it will be one day which is known to YHWH. Not day and not night, but it will be that at evening time it will be light.’
If anything can warn us against taking these events too literally it is this. The ordinary sequence of night and day will cease. There will be continual light. There will no longer be periods of brightness followed by periods of gloom, but a period of continual day. We are reminded of Isaiah’s words, ‘Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of YHWH has risen upon you — and nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising’ (Isa 60:1). Compare ‘The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light –’ (words of Isa 9:2 applied to Jesus in Mat 4:14-17).
‘One day which is known to YHWH.’ No longer days of men but a day of God, continual and unceasing, where there is no day or night. As Isaiah puts it, ‘the sun will no longer be your light by day, nor will the moon give light to you for brightness, but YHWH will be to you an everlasting light, and your God your glory. Your sun will no more go down, nor will your moon withdraw itself, for YHWH will be your everlasting light, and the days of your mourning will be ended’ (Isa 60:19-20). Compare also, ‘the sun and moon stood still in their habitation’ (Hab 3:11).
We may see the fulfilment of this in the presence of the One Who is the light of the world (Joh 8:12) and who makes us children of light (Luk 16:8; Joh 12:36; Eph 5:8; 1Th 5:5). We have been transported from under the power of darkness into the kingdom of His beloved Son (Col 1:13). We walk in the light as He is in the light (1Jn 1:7) for He is light (1Jn 1:5). Compare also Joh 3:18-21.
That the presence of YHWH means that, for His people from then on, there will be continual light in the spiritual sense is wonderful and heart warming. And this depiction of continual light is taken up in the description of the eternal kingdom in Rev 21:23-25, ‘and the city has no need of the sun, nor of the moon to shine upon it, for the glory of God did lighten it and its lamp is the Lamb — there will be no night there’. John applies it to the present time when he says, ‘the darkness is past and the true light is already shining’ (1Jn 2:8). As he said in his Gospel, ‘there was the true light, which lights every man, coming into the world.’ And as Jesus Himself said, ‘I am the light of the world. He who follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life’ (Joh 8:12). Here is the continual light untouched by darkness in reference to earth.
Thus the period of continual light in one way represents the light at present shining continually in the darkness through Him Who is the light, and in another refers to living in the eternal presence of the light of God.
Zec 14:7
‘And it will happen in that day that living waters will go out from Jerusalem, half of them towards the eastern sea and half of them towards the western sea. In summer and in winter it will be.’
This picture of a great river issuing from Jerusalem in two directions providing water in both summer and winter, giving Jerusalem all the advantages of the Euphrates and the Nile rather than being dependent on rain, is again idealistic. It is a picture of God’s provision, of abundant supply and spiritual blessing.
We might not make too much of the fact that the waters are said to issue forth from Jerusalem in both directions were it not that this is made quite clear in Ezekiel 47, the passage which Zechariah must surely have in mind. This is no natural river but a river that flows from the house of God (Eze 47:1) and from ‘Jerusalem’ itself (high above sea level). As it goes it deepens and expands. Wherever it goes life springs up and the Dead Sea, where nothing lives, is turned into a fisherman’s delight (Eze 47:9-10). And because the water issues from the sanctuary fruit trees will have permanent life, producing fruit every month (Eze 47:12).
This glorious river, like the apocalyptic Jerusalem itself, is symbolic of the truth of God going out to the nations bringing life wherever it goes. In John Jesus proclaims it as speaking of the Holy Spirit flowing through believers (Joh 7:37-39).
So the rivers are rivers of life, denoting the power of the Spirit at work, going out from Jerusalem through His people, in spite of the enmity of the nations. It is the outpouring of the spirit of grace and of supplication (Zec 12:10).
Should This All Be Taken Slavishly Literally?
The question may be asked as to whether it could all be fulfilled literally? There must, of course, be the theoretical possibility that an earthquake could split the Mount of Olives and continue splitting mountains from coast to coast causing a valley reaching both seas east and west, resulting in an equivalent to the Suez Canal. But that exaggerates the text and would flow by Jerusalem and not from it (and Ezekiel especially is very specific on this point), and it is not in accordance with the effects of the split in the Mount of Olives as described here. Nor does Zechariah link the two. Furthermore that would be a salt water canal not a refreshing, life-giving river as depicted here.
So in a book where vivid imagery has been present from the beginning speaking of divine horsemen, of supernatural smiths, of an angel measuring Jerusalem, of the crowning of Joshua in the heavenly courts, of a golden lampstand, of olive trees, of a flying ephod and of heavenly chariots, and here of a time of permanent day, the possibility of the language being intended to be wholly parabolic must be considered a probability.
End of Note.
Zec 14:9
‘And YHWH will be king over all the earth. In that day will YHWH be one, and His name one.’
The purpose of YHWH’s activity is now confirmed It is that He might establish His rule over all the earth. This is the beginning of the Kingly Rule of God. And as Jesus made clear that Reign began with Him.
John the Baptiser declared ‘the Kingly Rule of God is at hand’ (Mat 3:2), and Jesus stressed that the Kingly Rule of God was available to those who sought it (Mat 6:33). In His parables of that Reign He demonstrated how it would grow and grow as men responded to His word (Matthew 13; Mar 4:26-30), and His casting out of evil spirits demonstrated that the Kingly Rule of God had come to those who heard Him (Mat 12:28). The coming of that Kingly Rule with power was revealed at the transfiguration, for it was present in the presence of Jesus (Mar 9:1). Thus when the Pharisees asked when the Kingly Rule of God would come Jesus replied, ‘the Kingly Rule of God is among you’ (Luk 17:21). Entry under the Kingly Rule of God was by being born of the Spirit (Joh 3:5), so that Paul proclaimed the Kingly Rule of God, teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ (Act 28:31).
Of course this growth of the Kingly Rule of God will finally reach its culmination at the last judgment when God will be all in all. But that final day has not come here in Zechariah for there are still many things to be accomplished.
‘In that day will YHWH be one, and His name one.’ But in that day there will be no rival to God. Nothing and no one will be able to stand against Him. He will be supreme in His oneness (compare Deu 6:4). His name will not be shared with any other or applied to any other for all concentration will be on Him. And it is this glorious name, the name above every name, that Paul applies to Jesus Christ in Php 2:5-11 because it is His name.
In view of Zec 14:10 many have suggested the possible translation, ‘YHWH will be king over the whole land’. But Zec 14:12 makes clear that His sovereignty goes wider than that to reach the nations of the world, and in 16 onwards it is the whole world that acknowledges His rule.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Zec 14:5. And the Lord my God shall come, &c. And JEHOVAH shall go, the God of all holy ones, with thee. This is a literal translation of the Hebrew text, and affords a sense beyond exception or improvement. The same Jehovah, of whom it is said Zec 14:3 that he would go forth and fight against the unsanctified nations, he as the God, the patron and protector of all holy ones, all true believers, it is here said, will march with thee, O Jerusalem, as thine ally and auxiliary. So the preposition im, properly imports. The address is here to Jerusalem in the second person, as it evidently is also, Zec 14:1.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Zec 14:5 And ye shall flee [to] the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, [and] all the saints with thee.
Ver. 5. And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains ] Or, ye shall flee the valley of the mountains, sc. of mount Olivet, made by God, Zec 14:4 by whom the Romans were set to work to garrison mount Olivet against the Jews; and, by digging down a great part of it, to fill up the brook Kidron, or the town ditch, and to bring a wall (wherewith they compassed about the whole city) through the midst of this mount; whereby the city was greatly pressed, and much annoyed. This mountain ye shall flee (as many of you as are Azal; that is, separated: confer Exo 24:11 Isa 43:4 ), and repair to Pella, a place of rest provided for you. Not without some perturbation of spirit (though causeless), as in common calamities it happens; and the like shall befall the very elect also at the last day, till they have recollected themselves, till they remember that now their redemption draweth nigh.
And ye shall flee
Like as ye fled from before the earthquake
In the days of Uzziah king of Judah
And the Lord my God shall come
And all the saints with thee
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
the mountains = My mountains. So called because of the physical change which HE will yet bring about, in the two new mounts formed out of one.
Azal. A new place, yet to have this name, at one extremity of the valley.
the earthquake. Referred to in Amo 1.
saints = holy ones: i.e. angels; as in Job 5:1, &c. Figure of speech Hysteresis. App-6.
God. Hebrew. Elohim. App-4.
and. Some codices, with Aramaean, Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate, read this “and” in the text.
the. Some codices with Aramaean and Syriac, read “his”.
saints = holy ones: i.e. angels; as in Job 5:1. Jud 1:14, Compare Deu 33:2, Deu 33:3.
Thee. Some codices with Aramaean and Syriac, read “him”. This takes us on to the Second Advent. No “flight to Pella” can be accepted as a fulfilment, in any sense.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
the mountains: or, my mountains, for the, etc. or, when he shall touch the valley of the mountains to the place he separated. ye shall flee. Num 16:34, Rev 11:13, Rev 16:18-21
ye fled: Isa 29:6, Amo 1:1
the Lord: Psa 96:13, Psa 97:4-6, Psa 98:9, Isa 64:1-3, Isa 66:15, Isa 66:16, Dan 7:9-14, Dan 7:21-27, Mat 16:27, Mat 24:3, Mat 24:27-31, Mat 25:31, Mar 13:26, Mar 13:27, Luk 21:27, 2Th 2:8, Jam 5:8, Jud 1:14, Jud 1:15, Rev 6:16, Rev 6:17, Rev 20:4, Rev 20:11
and all: Deu 33:2, Joe 3:11, 1Th 3:13, 2Th 1:7-10
Reciprocal: Exo 19:18 – whole 1Ki 19:11 – an earthquake 2Ch 26:3 – Uzziah Job 9:5 – which overturneth Psa 7:1 – O Psa 50:5 – my saints Eze 38:20 – the fishes Dan 4:13 – an holy Dan 7:10 – thousand thousands Dan 8:13 – one saint Mic 7:17 – they shall be Hab 3:6 – the everlasting Zec 2:10 – lo Zec 4:7 – O great Zec 11:4 – Lord Mat 24:31 – gather Mar 8:38 – when 1Co 6:2 – the saints Eph 3:18 – with Heb 9:28 – he appear Rev 6:12 – there Rev 8:5 – an Rev 19:14 – the armies
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Zec 14:5. This verse is figurative and refers to the same commotions indicated in the first part of the chapter. The reason for referring to the earthquake in the days of Uzziah is only as an Illustration. The history of this earthquake is quoted in connection with the comments on Amo 1:1. The upheaval that was caused bv the introduction of the Gospel was likened to the material one described in this note.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
14:5 And ye shall flee [to] the {e} valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach to Azal: yea, ye shall flee, as ye fled from before the {f} earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD {g} my God shall come, [and] all the saints with thee.
(e) He speaks of the hypocrites, who could not abide God’s presence, but would flee into all places, where they might hide themselves among the mountains.
(f) Read Amo 1:1 .
(g) Because they did not credit the Prophet’s words, he turns to God and comforts himself in that that he knew that these things would come, and says, “You, O God, with your angels will come to perform this great thing.”
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
The Israelites would flee for safety through this valley with mountains on either side (cf. 2Sa 15:16; 2Sa 15:30; 2Ki 25:4; Eze 11:22-25). Compare the Israelites’ flight through the Red Sea during the Exodus. The valley would reach as far as Azel (lit. be joined to, or be at the side of, near; cf. Mic 1:11), a site presently unknown but obviously some distance east of Jerusalem. They would flee as they did during the great earthquake that happened during King Uzziah’s reign over Judah (cf. Amo 1:1). [Note: See Josephus, Antiquities of . . ., 9:10:4.] Then the Lord would come with all His holy ones with Him, namely, Christians in heaven and angels (cf. Psa 89:5; Psa 89:7; Mat 25:31; Col 1:4; Col 1:12; Col 1:26-27; 1Th 3:13; Jud 1:14; Rev 19:11-16). Zechariah expressed his own relationship with the Lord, his faith in Him, and his wonder at this revelation by referring to Him personally: "O my God."